AAP to focus on illegal mining, corruption in Odisha

AAP state convenor Nishikanta Mohapatra said his party has sought feedback from the local units in order to give final shape to the manifesto.

“The mining scam and corruption are the main issues. Besides, the issues of agriculture, health, education, unemployment, law and order and Jan Lokpal will also find place," said Mohapatra, adding that his party may release its manifesto next week.

A commission, which probed illegal mining in Odisha, has exposed a scam of Rs 60,000 crore.

"This money could have been utilised, at least one crore rupees in each of the state's 52,000 villages and towns," said Mohapatra.

The elections for the 21 Lok Sabha seats and the 147-member assembly would be held simultaneously in Odisha on April 10 and 17.

AAP has so far announced candidates for 19 Lok Sabha and 112 assembly seats.

“We have a good prospect in six Lok Sabha constituencies. They are Bargarh, Kalahandi, Dhenkanal, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, and Berhampur," he said.

Although a strong anti-incumbency mood is prevailing across the state against the government led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the opposition parties are not in a position to encash it, Mohapatra added.

Congress joined the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) recently and people do not even trust the Bharatiya Janata Party because it was the coalition partner of the BJD for 11 years, he said.

"The AAP is emerging. It is in a rocky status but if people come around, there will be a drastic change," Mohapatra said.

"People are supporting our party but how to scale up further with limited financial resources is a challenge," he added.

(Agencies)

Source: Breaking News

Naxals can escalate attacks during poll season: Report

The senior security official has also said that the Naxals are trying to prove their muscle during the upcoming general elections after their previous appeals to boycott the Chhattisgarh assembly elections failed last year.

Meanwhile, Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has announced that the government would leave no stones unturned in dealing strictly with Naxal terror.

The Home Ministry on 17th February had sent letters to director generals and chief secretaries of the nine Naxal-hit states, alerting them about possible terror attacks before the upcoming elections.

The nine Naxal-hit states include Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh.

The security agencies on February 2 had obtained documents from Jamui district in Bihar. The documents had a blue print of the Naxal plan to boycott upcoming elections.

In one of the documents titled ‘Election Boycott’, all the regional commanders of the Naxals were ordered to increase attacks on security forces and political leaders, which would result in a situation of complete chaos, ultimately stopping people from reaching polling stations out of fear.

The deadly Naxal attack on security forces in Chhattisgarh, which claimed the lives of 15 security personnels, has been linked to this Naxal strategy only.

Senior security officials believe that the Naxals are peeved after their previous call of boycotting last year’s Chhattisgarh elections proved futile and that is why they would try hard to regain their fear-factor before the upcoming elections.

During the 2009 general elections, around 129 incidents of Naxal attack had transpired on the polling day, claiming 24 lives. In the 2004 general elections, nine people had lost their lives in 109 incidents of Naxal terror on polling day.

(JPN/Bureau)

Source: Latest News

Liquor shops to install CCTV cameras in Odisha

The measure has been taken to ensure trouble-free Assembly and Lok Sabha elections in the district on April 10, administration sources said on Monday.

   

Activities of anti-socials can be recorded and the footages would help police detect suspects in case of any crime, said police.

   

A senior excise officer said around 75 percent liquor shops have already installed CCTV cameras in their units.

The district administration had ordered closure of transit houses, adjoining liquor off-shops during elections to Berhampur Municipal Corporation. The houses, used for boozing, will remain shut.

   

"Excise officials have been asked to crack down on bootleggers in the run-up to twin elections," said collector (Ganjam) Prem Chandra Chaudhary.

   

A meeting of administration and excise officials was held here on Saturday to review the situation. Sub-collector (Berhampur) B K Das presided. The excise officer added that striking force units have been constituted to maintain strict vigil on illicit liquor trade.

   

"They would conduct raids and take stringent action against the guilty," he added. The district has around 40 bhatis, 52 foreign liquor shops, nine on-hotel bars and three bottling plants, including Aska Cooperative Sugar Industry Limited.

(Agencies)

Source: Latest News